I like you, but I don't know it!
by RaiKazurashi
Summary: Claire was the doctor's secret admirer and she secretly loves him, but she doesn't even know it. But after her many encounter with the doctor herself, the other finally develops a feelings for her. A simple story. TrentXClaire
1. Chapter 1

Only to be told you're bold doesn't make Claire thinks she should gave up. Why? Because she wanted to ask the doctor out sooooo badly! It's a Winter Thanksgiving anyway, what could hurt? She told herself.

So she stuffed her rucksack with lots of delicious healthy food in order to lure him about and set off from her house quickly, (she forgot to lock her doors) ran straight to the clinic, only to eagerly invite him over.

__

_Knock, knock._

The doctor opened the door himself that evening since Elli has gone home not long ago. It was supposedly a holiday for everyone, but except for the doctor, of course, they have to work. Poor him, Claire thought. And Claire waited under the un-roofed entrance of the clinic patiently until he finally accessing the door for her. Her head was full with snowflakes.

"Hello, Tim." she said in a friendly tone as the doctor gave her a surprised look for her visit, ignoring her freezing head. She could guess about his sequential questions of "Why'd you come here?" or "What are you doing?"

The doctor frowned for a bit second. "I thought I told you not to call me that...but hello." lastly he smiled, actually enjoying her visit. Claire turned amused for not hearing his weird questions. She smiled childishly. "You're not asking for why I'm here??"

"It's cold, so get inside." He reckoned to the in-door's. Once again the girl got her surprises but she did as she was told quickly. The doors are left locked few moments later. Claire couldn't believe that she is now with the doctor, her most admired person in town.

How should she describe this? Claire had liked the doctor since she first met him. She thought he was an amazing person, and amazing as he is, she thought it was very cool of him to not say of lots of things. He's a mystery! She liked that.

"It's a Winter Thanksgiving today," she started. "So I thought of giving you something you might like."

"Give me...Something?" the doctor exclaimed as if he didn't believe of what he'd just heard. For a few seconds his face looks rosy, and red. Claire notices that and giggled. "Yeah, something." so she unpacks her rucksack and withdraw all the delicacies on the doctor's table. "Taa-daah! This is it!"

The doctor looked at the foods interestingly. Small shines were on his eyes. Claire was glad she made him got giddy, or sort.

He backed for a few steps, face reddened. "Do you...Know that giving this to me means..that you have deep appreciation on me?" he spelled out. Claire nodded eagerly. "I do!"

"Then you appreciate me?" he asked clearly this time. Blinked.

"Of course!" she smiled widely. "You've been very great in saving the lives of the villagers, and you'd helped me few times before when I passed out from working in the fields, remember??"

"Claire.." The doctor was obviously, touched. No one has ever done this to him. He felt like crying all the same but he holds it.

"Anyway, I thought that you would like to eat healthy meals today. I cooked them all you know? I borrowed Manna's kitchen."

Smiling, the doctor returns to his seat that is in front of her. He strokes his own hair and sighed. "You..don't have to go for all the troubles just to say thanks to me."

"Tee-hee." the girl giggled again. "Then I should just spell it out to you; Thank you, Tim, for all those helps."

He stares down at her and nodded. "Yeah..you're welcome."

"Now let's eat!" with that, both the young and not-really-young people enjoys their food. Claire forgot to change the location and invite him over her house, but still she had fun. The doctor carved the day's date as one of his most precious days, and sadly, Gray who was hoping to invite Claire over, didn't get to see her and stayed inside her house to make sure her house wasn't broken in. What tragics.

**_-t.s.u.z.u.k.u-_**


	2. Chapter 2

Today Claire went shopping to buy her grocery. She needs to make it as a routine from now on because a few days ago she just bought a kitchen. What use of it can she apply if she don't cook now, don't she? So she got the idea to act like a common auntie and went down the pebble roads and walked to the mini supermarket, following Manna's advice to buy things.

"Let's see.." she examined the small sheet of paper in her hand and sighed, looking at the lady's handwriting. "Why I should buy vegetables??"

Her tragic story begins here when she doesn't really enjoy eating vegetables, but she plants it. And now she has the list to BUY them. What use?!, she bursts in the middle of snowy path. "I won't buy them! No way!"

__

'I think you should take the carrots as well,"

Today is wednesday.

"..ah, really? Then I'll take one..."

"Take two or three. Eat it regularly, though, a small figure of girl like you wouldn't finish eating one in one day." laughter.

"Oh..okay then." slowly, Claire took three pieces of long carrots and put it inside her basket. _Oh gawd what she's doing?_

In a hopeful coincidence, she met the doctor in the supermarket, so he helped her to do her shopping.

So that's why.

Doctors. They told people to eat vegetables. A lot.

Claire cried inside, secretly. But to make the story more interesting, the doctor said something like he doesn't have anything to do that day, so he said he would like to visit her house, and teach her in some way how to really cook plants...er, vegetables. Claire agreed, obviously. Then the two people starts walking leaving the supermarket with Karen, the owner's daughter and also her friend, suspects the both of them being in love, were on her way to spread the lovey-dovey gossip!

__

"So, lend me your apron," the doctor instructed.

"Right, here you go." she gave it to him.

_Chop, chop, chop._

"Claire, could you please wash this vegetables? I'm making the sauce."

"Oh...sure thing."; he hand her over the bowl. Claire washed it carefully, not wanting to be scolded for the next few seconds if she doesn't do it properly. She knows that the doctor is a strict person. But yet, she knows that he is a caring one too. She smiled thinking that they are actually spending the day together...ahh! Not pervetly spending time together..she meant it by doing something meaningful with her admirable person. Just after she finished doing that he's done as well. So the two people sat down and the doctor began to put everything in mix, so that they can start eating.

Claire gave a weird face, although she loves the scent of the food he made.

"What's wrong?" the doctor asks. "You don't like vegetables?"

"You can say..not really KEEN to it..haha." she laughs. "But its okay!! I'll eat this."

"Really? I'm sorry I've kinda forced you to make this lunch with me then," he smiled, which was rare.

"Oh, well, you see, I don't mind that at all. Really. Plus I have to eat them in any case..or then I won't have many iron in my body to do vigour works.." she said. She was practically trying to make the doctor smile a bit longer, or perhaps more. And he did.

Now he smiles awkwardly though. '..Do you read a lot?" he asks.

"Oh, why do you ask?"

"You seem to know some of the nutritious facts, now that you mention it, you said 'iron'."

"Yeah.. I read sometimes. Marry suggested good books to me."

"Really..that's good. Now let's eat?"

_Munch, munch._

"How's the taste?"

"Hmm..it's not bad. It was...good actually. I never thought vegetables would taste like this." she gave her sincerest comment, no offense. The doctor chuckled.

"Of course vegetable tastes great!" he spoke with enthusiasm. "It's a healthy food after all."

Claire smiled looking at how happy he is at the moment. So she just nods. "Yup, totally."

Finally the doctor found that it was interesting after all to talk with somebody. He enjoyed his stay at her house until late, and then went home on his own at the evening. He said he would come again if he had time.

**_-t.s.u.z.u.k.u-_**


	3. Chapter 3

Claire saw butterfly. Lots of butterflies. She turned confused. Why would there be butterflies in the middle of the winter?? She reached out her hand to catch the creature... _"Eh?"_

"Are you up--"

"Eeekkkk!!!!!"

"Relax..calm down, you're in the clinic."

Oh, so it was the doctor...the one and only doctor in Mineral Town.. Thinking of that makes Claire calmed a bit. She stares at her surrounding to notice a familiar room where she used to be found waking up after doing an extremely tiring works.

Wait..work?

"You're calmed now?" he asked more. "You shouldn't move around so much."

Claire nods weakly and spoke softly. "T-tim...I..."

"And you shouldn't call my name that way either," he smiled to say no, but came closer to hear her out anyways. "but what can I help you with?"

Claire rolled her eyes down to her feet. "I can't feel my legs." And she notices that she was just not doing well.

"..I've pretty much expected that." he rubbed his chin. "You hit your leg with something hard?"

"Well, I remember knocking on something..or should I say...a huge log bumped on me?"

He sighed. "Claire, what did I told you about being_ careful_?"

She laughs nervously, but later stops when she thought about being UNABLE to do work in anytime soon for the fractured legs. "Oh my oh my..."

"Now you realized it do you?"

She got very silent for a moment. She thought about consulting the spirits to help her out, but...the Spring Tea Party...

"...will you help me, Tim?"

"..sure, I'll help. What can be done?"

"Well...if it doesn't burden you so much, about my chickens.."

"Oh, that. I'll ask Rick to take care of your animals, don't worry."

Then, at these times, Claire realized of how important friends are, and neighbors as well. Rick was another rancher in the village, so he would help her out won't he?? He was her neighbor and both friends. And the doctor was helping A LOT to ask him the favor.

"Thanks, Tim..er, I mean, doctor."

"You're welcome."

The doctor returns to his original seat then, and then came back with few medicines and showed her those pills. She doesn't look comfortable at all. "You'll have to eat all this, you know. So get better." he states.

"Well, doctor..as much as I like being healthy, I do hate medicines.."

"Eat it."

"..."

"Claire,"

"..sigh. Alright alright! I'll have those in my diet! Darn my health!!"

He smirks. "Alright. Be a good girl and--" before he could finish his sentences he blushed madly. Claire just stared at him, notices his face changing shades. Why does his face seemed to be so dark-shed-colored,... suddenly? The doctor retreats and closes his mouth. Bad mouth, bad mouth!, he thought. He scolds himself; how could he talks so carelessly...

"Doctor...Tim, err, anyway..are you okay?" she called.

"I'm..okay. I just got something unpleasant in thoughts." he lied.

"Want to tell me about it??" but she sounds excited. He thought about her; is she not sad about her condition? No cries? No worries? Or is it that she's just pretending to be okay? He wanted to ask those questions. He wanted to know about her feelings.

He wanted..to know her.

Wait, what's this? Fondness..? He blushed again. The next time she called his name he felt giddy.

"Tim?"

"Y-yes?"

"......."

"You're weird today.!"

**_-t.s.u.z.u.k.u-_**


	4. Chapter 4last chapter

"Claire, can you come over here for a minute?" The doctor called from the corner of his office. He was sitting there uncomfortably. Claire was at the opposite corner. His voice sounded so calm when he called her. She looked up from doing her little writing and glanced at him before noticing his index finger were reckoning her to come by. _What?_

She quickly went to his side to see what he got for her. Her faint smile causes the doctor's heart to ache somehow, he felt guilty just because of it.

"I want you to know something," he said. She nods her head and listen.

"What is it you wanted to tell me?"

"...this is about my leave." he continues. "I'll have to leave Mineral Town for a several years and go back to my homeland."

"..Looks like I can't ask you to stay here any longer, isn't it?" she said, sad, actually.

"I'm very sorry..." he spoke softly. "But I know one thing which can make you to put decisions on." he said.

"Decision? Me?" She spelled out. He let out a huge sigh and then breathe in loudly, collecting confidence before moving on. Then he spoke,

"I'm planning to marry you..and bring you along with me. Maybe then it's okay to go there?"

She blushed hearing his statement. _No way..._

"Claire," he resumes quickly, not giving the girl any time to imagine anything. He bends his body down to a little degree to match with her. "will you marry me?"

He had thought about this thing over weeks. Now is the perfect time to tell her how he felt in their relationship. The villagers already asking him about when will he settle down, so the first thing that comes in his mind was Claire. It wasn't Elli. He knew, he didn't love her after all.

The girl heard him now. "Marry...you?"

"Yes..." and he kissed her cheek. Claire was stiff and shocked, but she did nothing, either to push him, or pull him.

"I love you." he said after that. She only looked at him and not giving any reactions. "But..maybe you just didn't have anything to do with it." he sighs, disappointed upon her less-reaction play. "I'm sorry I called you just to tell you this today.."

She keeps staring, although she felt different about him after that.

"I was just-"

"Are you serious about that?" she ask then, looking directly into his dark eyes. He stopped.

"..I'm serious." he replied quickly. Finally seeing her reaction.

"Well...I never thought of you'd ask me this.." she paused.

"but.." she played with her thumb.

"Okay." and finally she smiles. The doctor? He jumped.

__

_WEDDING DAY_

"I now declare you, man and wife."

Trent walked towards her on the stage gladly to reveal her face from the veil on her head. He strokes her hair at the same time, mesmerizing the moment of his life getting married to his beloved person. Claire just smiles shyly, and suddenly she felt his warm big hand holding her face.

"Claire," he called her name softly. Those look on his face at that time, was the look she loves the most. She secretly likes him before this. "please return my favor this time." he smiled. She nods her head, and they finished the day's ceremony

__

**OMG!! It's over!! XD**


End file.
